Cholera Outbreak in Australia - Essay Example

Food poisoning by gram-negative bacteria Name Course Institution Date Food poisoning by gram-negative bacteria Food poisoning is a widespread but worrying and at times the problem threaten the life of many people around the globe. Food poisoning is severe Gastroenteritis which is brought about by consumption of drinks or foods infected with either bacteria, bacteria toxins, poisons from animals and plants or inorganic substances. Individuals who are infected with food borne bacteria sometimes may experience the symptoms or not. There are different strategies that can be used to prevent the spread of food-borne diseases (Eds. McLauchlin & Little 2005). This paper will discuss the various strategies that can be used to prevent food borne diseases. Raw material contamination and handling The quality of food raw materials and packaging used in the preparation of food is imperative since the contamination through handling can be persisted through cooking and preparation. Raw materials that are not fit for consumption by humans need to be isolated during the process of production or reception in the factory. Salmonella outbreak linked to Melbourne Cup functions One person died, and eight hospitalized after attending Melbourne cup function. The infection is believed to be as a result of salmonella infection originating from a batch of eggs. The eggs were used to produce fresh mayonnaise (Amy 2013). Outbreak of Salmonella Infections related to Raw Cashew Cheese Between November 2013 and January 2014, there was reported outbreak of Salmonella in Wyoming, Nevada and California states. 17 individuals ranging from 2 to 83 years had been infected. 53 % of the infected people were male, 20% hospitalised but no deaths reported. The infection was caused by raw cashew cheese which was manufactured by The Cultured Kitchen of West Sacramento, California (Isaacs et al. 2005). Food preparation prior to any processing The preparation of any food prior to consumption, inadequate reheating and cooling, undercooking and storage of food at ambient temperature are some of the important factors that lead to outbreaks of food poisoning. Campylobacter infection An outbreak of disease caused by Campylobacter was discovered in South Australia in 2012. The initial infection was found to emanate from a birthday party that took place on 14 July 2012 at a restaurant. The Campylobacter infection at the birthday party was caused by consumption of chicken liver pate. Livers can be externally and internally contaminated by Campylobacter. The bacterium Campylobacter is mainly present in raw poultry, unpasteurized milk, pets and contaminated water (Parry, Fearnley & Denehy 2012). Despite following the cooking procedures, the Campylobacter infection was still found in the chicken liver pate. It is, therefore, imperative to make sure that the safe preparation processes are followed and appropriate handling of food to prevent further infections (Parry, Fearnley & Denehy 2012). Cholera outbreak in Australia The outbreak occurred on 1972 in an aircraft from London to Sydney. After diagnosis, it was found out that Vibrio cholera caused the cholera. The source of contamination was found to be water or food loaded into the aircraft at either Bahrain or Singapore (Sutton 1974). It was speculated that there might have been carrier Vibrio cholera in the kitchen of the plane when the outbreak occurred since two carriers were detected a fortnight later. The carrier contaminated the food when handling the food. This shows that there is a need to institute a code of conduct for supply of water and food in the planes and also screening of employees (Sutton 1974). Heating or cooking of foods, including reheating of foods Time and temperature combination in the process of reheating foods have to be adequately long and high so as to destroy huge quantity of microorganisms. Campylobacter outbreaks as a result of chicken consumption This outbreak emphasizes the essentially recognized danger for Campylobacter disease from chicken prepared commercially. The cause for this outbreak was liable to have been either the warm chicken greens or the chicken mushroom pasta. Dangers connected with undercooked chicken have been highlighted in different studies. This flare-up highlights the criticalness of guaranteeing that chicken is completely cooked and taking action to forestall cross-pollution of prepared to consume nourishment with raw chicken (Millard, Black & Kirk 2006). Outbreak of Escherichia coli O157:H7 Infections related to Ground Beef Wolverine packaging company in May 19, 2014 recalled about 0.9 million kilograms of ground beef products which were believed to be contaminated with Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli (STEC O157:H7). Twelve people were infected with the strain of STEC O157:H7, 58 percent of the infected people were admitted in the hospitals, but there were no cases of death that were reported. The source of infection was ground beef that was manufactured by Wolverine Packing Company. As a preventive strategy, consumers were advised not to consume undercooked or raw ground beef and to cook the ground beef hamburgers at a temperature of 160oF (Rangel et al. 2005). Cooling of food and cold temperature storage Salmonella in Aioli In January 2010, there was an outbreak of gastroenteritis from people who had consumed burger from a retail burger outlet. The outbreak may have been caused by large quantities of eggs available. The outbreak happened during the summer, and the temperatures were high. The eggs were not kept under refrigerated conditions thus sweating. The sweating reduces the shelf life and increases the likely hood of salmonella penetration from outside the egg shells (NSW Food Authority 2014). Clostridium perfringens outbreak There was an outbreak at Brisbane North side Population Health Unit. The source of contamination was as a result of large quantities of meat being allowed to cool for an extended period at room temperature (Smith, Young, Davison & Holloway 2008). The role of the food handler Food handlers play an important role in making sure the safety of food is maintained in the whole process from production throughout to consumption. Shigellosis outbreak in Australia from baby corns In august 2010, there was an outbreak of shigellosis in Victoria and Queensland states in Australia. The infection was as a result of baby corn imported from Thailand. The importing company employees were found neither to wear gloves nor to wash their hands in the process of removing husks and sorting hence coming into contact with baby corns (Tikhamram et al. 2007). E. coli Outbreak caused by kebabs There was an outbreak of E. coli from people who had consumed kebabs at Kenny’s in January 2014 at Miranda fair. Authorities found out the cause of infection were contamination from staff at Kenny’s who did not follow the basic general hygienic practices. a. Explain the role of MKTTn and RVS broth in studying Salmonella in food samples. Selective enhancement broths have an astounding impact on the specificity and sensitivity of plating media. The RSV and MKTTn broth have been found out to be the suitable enhancement to investigate salmonella in carcasses of chicken and other products. b. Explain how the BS and XLD enable Salmonella to be differentiated from other non-lactose fermenters in the food samples. Most of the enteric bacteria with the exception of Shigella under acidic conditions, they ferment xylose. As a result, on XLD agar, the bacteria form yellow colonies. However, Salmonella decarboxylate lysines thus increasing the pH making the colonies stay red. From thiosulfate, Salmonella also produces hydrogen sulfide leading to black precipitate. BS inhibits gram-positive bacteria while lactose sucrose gram-negative fermenting shigella and bacilli are suppressed. c. Briefly discuss the importance of steotyping of Salmonella. How does it work? Types of Salmonella are classified by scientists into serotypes through identification of the structures present on the surfaces of the bacteria. As of 1960s, researchers have utilized serotyping to help discover Salmonella flare-ups and follow them to their starting place. Lab masters serotype the Salmonella from tainted individuals. At the point when cases with one serotype expand, they think a flare-up and illness analysts begin their examination. Serotyping has always been the center of community wellbeing observing of Salmonella diseases in excess of 50 years. Presently, researchers use DNA analysis to further partition every serotype into more subtypes and to discover more flare-ups. With the up and coming era of sequencing engineering, progressions proceed as the lab can discover data in relation to the species, subtype, and serovar of microbes in only one test. At present, no less than two researchers must create these three vital bits of data utilizing three different examinations or more (Eds. McLauchlin & Little 2005. References Amy, R., 2013. Woman dies after Melbourne Cup salmonella outbreak. Retrieved 29 October 2014, from http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/queensland/woman-dies-after-melbourne-cup-salmonella-outbreak-20131114-2xixq.html Isaacs, S., Aramini, J., Ciebin, B., Farrar, J. A., Ahmed, R., Middleton, D., ... & Salmonella Enteritidis PT30 Outbreak Investigation Working Group. 2005. An international outbreak of salmonellosis associated with raw almonds contaminated with a rare phage type of Salmonella Enteritidis. Journal of Food Protection®, Vol. 68, No. 1, pp 191-198. McLauchlin, J., & Little, C. L. (Eds.). 2007. Hobbs' food poisoning and food hygiene. CRC Press. Millard, G., Black, A., Kirk, M., & others,. 2006. Campylobacter outbreak due to chicken consumption at an Australian Capital Territory restaurant. Department Of Health And Ageing. NSW Food Authority,. 2014. NSW Food Authority: safer food, clearer choices | NSW Food Authority. Retrieved 29 October 2014, from http://www.foodauthority.nsw.gov.au Parry, A., Fearnley, E., & Denehy, E. 2012. Surprise’: Outbreak of Campylobacter infection associated with chicken liver pâté at a surprise birthday party, Adelaide, Australia, 2012. Western Pacific Surveillance And Response Journal, Vol. 3, No. 4, pp 16--19. Rangel, J. M., Sparling, P. H., Crowe, C., Griffin, P. M., & Swerdlow, D. L. 2005. Epidemiology of< i> Escherichia coli O157: H7 Outbreaks, United States, 1982–2002. Smith, P., Young, M., Davison, R., & Holloway, J. 2008. An outbreak of Clostridium perfringens and the enforcement of food safety standards. Communicable Diseases Intelligence Quarterly Report, Vol. 32, No.4, pp 462. Sutton, R. 1974. An outbreak of cholera in Australia due to food served in flight on an international aircraft. Journal Of Hygiene, Vol. 72, No.3, pp 441--451. Tikhamram S, Prempree P, Thammavijya P, Seewilai U, Siri-arayaporn P. 2007. Traceback of Thai baby corn implicated in Danish and Australian shigellosis outbreaks: Findings and implications for control, August 2007. Retrieved 29 October 2014, from . Read More